Who Will Lead Next? A Qualitative Study on Leadership Succession Planning in a Malaysian Dental School
Main Article Content
Abstract
Within higher education, leadership succession planning fosters institutional stability and sustainability. This qualitative study explored the perceived challenges and strategies related to leadership succession planning among faculty leaders at a Malaysian public dental school. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight senior faculty members. Thematic analysis identified four major themes: (a) challenges in leadership succession planning; (b) strategies for succession planning; (c) impacts of succession planning; and (d) qualities of future leaders. Challenges highlighted included five sub-themes: unclear role descriptions, insufficient training for leadership positions, staff shortages and workload constraints, faculty reluctance towards leadership roles, and leadership turnover and organisational instability. Strategies included faculty documentation and guidelines, and talent identification and mentoring. The impacts of succession planning were faculty continuity and leadership sustainability, and faculty development and organisational culture. Meanwhile, future leaders required credibility and leading by example, adaptability, and selflessness and effective communication skills. These findings suggested the need for well-structured leadership succession planning to promote long-term growth and resilience. It also provided valuable insights to help other schools adopt the present framework and enhance their succession planning processes.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Ayyaswamy K, Kathirvel N, Gobinath VM. Effective leadership strategies for enhancing student success in higher education. In: Burrel D, Nguyen C, editors. New horizons in leadership: inclusive explorations in health, technology, and education. IGI Global Scientific Publishing; 2025. p. 32. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-6437-6.ch003
Al-Sawai A. Leadership of healthcare professionals: where do we stand? Oman Med J. 2013;28(4):285–87. https://doi.org/10.5001/omj.2013.79
van Diggele C, Burgess A, Roberts C, Mellis C. Leadership in healthcare education. BMC Med Educ. 2020;20(Suppl 2):456. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-020-02288-x
Kumar RDC. Leadership in healthcare. Clin Integr Care. 2022;10:100080. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. intcar.2021.100080
Trainor R. What the head of a university expects from the leadership of a dental school. J Dent. 2019;87:62–5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdent.2019.05.003
Ritchie M. Succession planning for successful leadership: why we need to talk about succession planning! MiE. 2019;34(1):33–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/0892020619881044
Ellinger LK, Trapskin PJ, Black R, Kotis D, Alexander E. Leadership and effective succession planning in health-system pharmacy departments. Hosp Pharm. 2014;49(4):369–75. https://doi. org/10.1310/hpj4904-369
Farah B, Elias R, De Clercy C, Rowe G. Leadership succession in different types of organizations: what business and political successions may learn from each other. Leadersh Q. 2020;31(1):101289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2019.03.004
Antoniadou M. Leadership and managerial skills in dentistry: characteristics and challenges based on a preliminary case study. Dent J (Basel). 2022;10(8):146. https://doi.org/10.3390/dj10080146
Nogueira ALG, Munari DB, Sousa ET, Ribeiro LCM. Nursing leadership succession planning: paths for elaboration. Rev Esc Enferm USP. 2021;55:e03758. https://doi.org/10.1590/S1980-220X2020022103758
Phillips LK. Succession planning in nursing education. Nurs Outlook. 2021;69(1):32–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2020.08.004
Rony ZT, Lestari TS, Ismaniah, Yasin M, Lubis FM. The complexity of leadership competence in universities in the 21st century. Cogent Soc Sci. 2023;9(2):2276986. https://doi.org/10.1080/233118 86.2023.2276986
Siambi JK. Leadership succession planning and organization transition: a review of literature. Int J Managerial Stud Res. 2022;10(3):16–30. https://doi.org/10.20431/2349-0349.1003003
Becker GS. Investment in human capital: a theoretical analysis. J Polit Econ. 1962;70(5, Part 2):9–49.
Hersey P, Blanchard KH. Life cycle theory of leadership. Train Dev J. 1969:26–34.
Tong A, Sainsbury P, Craig J. Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ): a 32-item checklist for interviews and focus groups. Int J Qual Health Care. 2007;19(6):349–57. https://doi.org/10.1093/intqhc/mzm042
Verlinden S, Wynen J, Kleizen B, Verhoest K. Blurred lines: exploring the impact of change complexity on role clarity in the public sector. Rev Public Pers Adm. 2022;43(3):479–503. https:// doi.org/10.1177/0734371x221093573
Govindarajo NS, Kumar DM, Ramulu SS. Why workers disengage? Factors from “head” or “heart” to be tagged on? Asian Soc Sci. 2014;10(17):108–19. https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v10n17p108
Schilling J, Schyns B, May D. When your leader just does not make any sense: conceptualizing inconsistent leadership. J Bus Ethics. 2022;185(1):209–21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-022-05119-9
Rothwell WJ. Effective succession planning: ensuring leadership continuity and building talent from within. New York: American Management Association; 2015.
Guise J. Succession planning in Canadian Academic Libraries. Waltham, MA: Chandos; 2016. p. 1–8.
Cahill J, Bowyer J, Rendell C, Hammond A, Korek S. An exploration of how programme leaders in higher education can be prepared and supported to discharge their roles and responsibilities effectively. Educ Res. 2015;57(3):272–86. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2015.1056640
Frisk S, Apelgren B-M, Sandoff M. Leadership for teaching and learning: exploring a department-level educational leadership role at a Swedish comprehensive university. Educ Manag Adm Lead. 2021;51(6):1461–77. https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432211051882
Hildebrand U. Performance and talent: essentials of succession planning. In: Zeuch M, editor. Handbook of human resources management. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer; 2015. p. 1–22. https:// doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40933-2_43-1
Dash NR, Koutaich R, Al Khalaf HA, Hani MJ, Koutaich R, Guraya SY. Development of a framework of leadership in academic medicine (FLAM). J Med Educ Curric Dev. 2024;11:23821205241296976. https://doi.org/10.1177/23821205241296976
Niewiesk S, Garrity-Rokous EG. The academic leadership framework: a guide for systematic assessment and improvement of academic administrative work. Glob Bus Organ Excell. 2021;40(4):50–63. https://doi.org/10.1002/joe.22083
Park SE, Chung D, Giannobile WV. Professional leadership training programs for dental faculty: perspectives of the US dental school deans. J Dent Educ. 2022;86(6):670–6. https://doi.org/10.1002/ jdd.12887
Yudianto K, Sekawarna N, Susilaningsih FS, Ramoo V, Somantri I. Succession planning leadership model for nurse managers in hospitals: a narrative review. Healthcare (Basel). 2023;11(4):454. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11040454
Weinstein GJ, Haden NK, Stewart DCL, Pyle MA, Albino AW, West KP. A profile of dental school deans, 2021. J Dent Educ. 2022;86(10):1304–16. https://doi.org/10.1002/jdd.12933
Aman-Ullah A, Mehmood W, Amin S, Abbas YA. Human capital and organizational performance: a moderation study through innovative leadership. J Innov Knowl. 2022;7(4):100261. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.jik.2022.100261
Yarnall J. Maximising the effectiveness of talent pools: a review of case study literature. Leadersh Organ Dev J. 2011;32(5):510–26. https://doi.org/10.1108/01437731111146596
Sainz M, Moreno-Bella E, Torres-Vega LC. Perceived unequal and unfair workplaces trigger lower job satisfaction and lower workers’ dignity via organizational dehumanization and workers’ self-objectification. Eur J Soc Psychol. 2023;53(5):921–38. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.2944
Smetackova I, Viktorova I, Martanova VP, Pachova A, Francova V, Stech S. Teachers between job satisfaction and burnout syndrome: what makes difference in Czech Elementary Schools. Front Psychol. 2019;10:2287. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02287
Chevalier RD. A brief history of performance improvement. Perform Improv. 2008;47(6):5–11.
https://doi.org/10.1002/pfi.20002
Bano Y, Omar SS, Ismail F. Succession planning best practices for organizations: a systematic literature review approach. Int J Glob Optim Appl. 2022;13(1):11–21. https://doi.org/10.56225/ ijgoia.v1i1.12
Ngatia EM. Credible leadership: characteristics and effects on leader performance. J Hum Resour Leadersh. 2024;8(3):1–12. https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t30141
Ibardaloza ET. Adaptive leadership behavior and organizational effectiveness in higher education institutions. iJOINED ETCOR. 2023;2(3):736–59.
Sundararajan B, Sundararajan M. Leaderspeak – an evolutionary psychology approach to reducing gaps in strategic communication. Int J Strateg Commun. 2023;17(3):266–79. https://doi. org/10.1080/1553118x.2023.2235575
Lin GSS, Goh SM, Halil MHM. Unravelling the impact of dental workforce training and education programmes on policy evolution: a mixed-method study protocol. Health Res Policy Syst. 2023;21(1):95. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-023-01048-9